I mostly cover prosecutorial, judicial, and police misconduct and the demise of the Rule of Law in the USA, with an occasional musical interlude.
Let justice roll down like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. Amos 5:24 (ESV)

Sunday, May 9, 2010

The CAC and LMJD Are Throwing a Party!!, plus The Prosecution's Rebuttal Strategy? Will Arnt and Gregor Suborn Perjury?

[Update, Sunday May 9, 8:05 AM]: This is from the "You Can't Make Up This Stuff" department (from an article in The Chattanoogan):

There will be professional dealers, showgirls and Elvis. Games will include poker, roulette, craps, blackjack and Texas holdem tables.

Music will be provided by the Collins Brother Band.

Admission is $25 and includes food, fun money and entertainment. Drinks will be sold separately.

Casino Night is for adults 21 and up.

Oh, but there is more, as there is a motorcycle "rally" to benefit the CAC. Now, this is most, most interesting. There will be public drinking and "showgirls," and all of the things that in his "cross" on Friday Len "The Man-Misogynist-Racist" Gregor supposedly hinted were immoral. AFTER ALL, PROSTITUTION IS LEGAL IN MUCH OF NEVADA, HOME OF LAS VEGAS!

Given that alcohol abuse and habitual gambling are two huge sources of child abuse and neglect, it seems quite odd to me that the CAC is celebrating two of the very things that destroy families and hurt children. Of course, I suppose that false and misleading testimony by CAC "investigators" also destroys families and hurts children, but, hey, it's a living!

Why do I suspect that a lot of people who took part with the prosecution in this sham trial are planning to attend this "gala" event? Furthermore, they ADVERTISED IT WHILE THE TRIAL STILL IS GOING ON.

Unbelievable. You really cannot make up this stuff!

[End Update]

Much is being made of the possible strategies the prosecution has in store for the rebuttal arguments to be made Monday. As one who is familiar with how prosecutors often suborn perjured testimony, I believe that it is highly-likely that we will see one or even both of the following by Facebook and The Man-Racist-Misogynist:

The prosecution will bring out a "witness" who will claim that Tonya Craft is a lesbian. Indeed, they hinted to this earlier, and a key staff member of the local chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Julie Watson, had written such on a number of Facebook posts, which she later took down;

Arnt and Gregor will attempt a "jumping on the bus" strategy in which one or two women will testify in court that Tonya Craft "confessed" to everything the prosecution alleges when Ms. Craft was confined overnight in a holding cell after her first arrest. (Ms. Craft shared the cell with two women, and I believe there is a good chance one or both of them will take the stand on Monday.

The claim of the local FCA is that the staffers "want to help you and your FCA huddle be strong in Christ!!" One wonders if being strong in passing smarmy rumors or outright lies is part of "being strong on Christ," as Christ in John 8 says that lies are of the devil.

(When I called the local FCA director Jay Fowler about this situation, he angrily told me that whatever Watson did had nothing to do with FCA -- a true statement, I admit, as gossip has nothing to do with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. However, he said it in a tone of not caring about what she did, and then he hung up. He refused to answer an email I sent to him later.)

Nonetheless, according to Watson, the prosecutors were going to bring in someone who would claim that she owned first-hand knowledge of lesbian activities by Ms. Craft. Now, not knowing Tonya Craft, I am in no position to comment on such matters, although both Ms. Craft and the woman with whom she allegedly was involved both have said they did NOT have a same-sex relationship.

Of course, even if they were so involved, it has no bearing at all on the facts of the case at hand. However, Arnt and Gregor are attempting to appeal to any homophobic fears that jurors might have, and also continue to engage in character assassination of the defendant and her supporters, all with the express approval of "Judge" Brian "House of Horrors."

A more serious attempt to pin guilt upon Ms. Craft, however, would come from a "jumping on the bus" strategy, and investigative reporter Bill Moushey, formerly of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, explains in an article on how prosecutors suborn perjury in federal cases:

In Florida, prisoners call the scam "jumping on the bus," and it is as tantalizing as it is perverse. Inmates in federal prisons barter or buy information that only an insider to a crime could know — often from informants with access to confidential federal crime files.

The prisoners memorize it and get others to do the same. Then, to win sentence reductions, they testify about crimes that might have been committed while they were in prison, by people they’ve never met, in places they’ve never been. The scam succeeds only because of the tacit approval of federal law enforcement officers.

State prosecutors often do the same, and if one or both of these "cellmates" take the stand, you can bet that they will have been given a detailed script that they will have tried to memorize. In fact, it will be amazing as these women "recount" detail after detail of an event that allegedly happened two years ago.

Now, such a move would be illegal according to the rules of evidence, but House already has demonstrated that he is not going to obey the law. Should he permit such a thing, it would legally require a mistrial, but, again, the Rule of Law seems not to exist in the LMJD.

This would be what lawyers call "sandbagging," and they like to remind me that rebuttal does not produce the "Perry Mason Moment." Nonetheless, as I have said before, this trial has not exactly been a paragon of the Majesty of the Law.

You can bet that should either one of these actions be taken Monday, Arnt and Gregor will have committed the felony of suborning perjury, and if House allows it, he will have committed an error that will require a mistrial. Now, neither Arnt nor Gregor will be indicted for felonies, as prosecutors look out for one another and, after all, Arnt and Gregor already have been called "heroes" in the local media and Arnt has won the J. Roger Thompson Award from the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia.

(Yes, the Council declared that Arnt:

possesses the character traits of the type of prosecutor we want to have in this state [and is] a prosecutor dedicated to fairness and has a strong adherence to professionalism, ethics, and moral obligations. He is the type of prosecutor we should all try to emulate.

It is nice to see that even Georgia prosecutors have a sense of humor, as I imagine that the other prosecutors in this state, after seeing Arnt in action, are proud that one of theirs can break the State Bar rules with the best of them. "Truth, ethics? We don't need no stinkin' truth. We don't need no stinkin' ethics.")

Nonetheless, either strategy would be utterly dishonorable (and I don't think that House, Arnt, and Gregor are worried about "honor" now -- they just want to "win"), and illegal if what the witnesses are saying is untrue. Yes, I am making serious allegations against three men who have a sworn duty to keep the law and not to suborn perjury or even put up with it.

Yet, because they have chosen to pursue the strategy we have seen these past few weeks, and because all three men represent the reprehensible "win at all costs" view that now pervades the ranks of prosecutors (and, face it, House is part of "the team"), I believe that the only way to get to the truth is to expose the lies.

Perhaps the prosecutors will follow neither strategy on Monday. That would be fine with me. But, if we see either of what I have predicted could happen, you will have an idea of the origins of their actions.

68 comments:

Although it doesn't apply exactly to your blog, I stumbled across this..http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6vwXbQZvJo&feature=player_embeddedIts Johnny Cash and "this old Flag" , made me think about our system, its injustices (at least here) and our right to stand up to and defeat tyranny. Thank You , Mr. Anderson for being a warrior against injustice.

I find the Julie Watson thing very interesting. Her facebook friends include the McDonalds (including the son, who is legally too young to have a facebook page), Holly Naive Kittle (a witness and participant in Arnt's facebook illegality), and a large majority of the Shiloh Baptist Congregation. Interesting, since this congregation has included at one time, the McDonalds, Deals, and Wilson families.

As for Jay Fowler, it does not surprise me. A mediocre athlete at best in High School at Tyner, he has somehow stumbled into his position and does an overall poor job. His eye for talented employees is obviously lacking based on the employment of someone such as Ms. Watson. This is a great reason for me to stop giving to the Chattanooga FCA and give my money elsewhere.

Even more interesting, the NW Georiga FCA head Greg Spradlin, is also a former Shiloh Baptist Member.

Julie served as a court escort for either child accuser One or number 2 -not sure which. She heard testimony from day one. Why doesn't her FB posts put her into contempt regarding the gag order? She was placed into that position by the State/Court - seems like the gag order should apply to everyone involved?

Yeah sure, I'm going to confess to total strangers the night I get booked into jail that I did the crime, and now I'm going to do the time. Like hell. Would you? Duh.

Where are they going to come up with someone who's going to admit she had a lesbian or bisexual encounter with Tonya Craft? Oh, that's right, all you have to do is charge someone with a crime, and tell them, " Let's make a deal, you say this, and we'll let you off."

Jumping on the bus, sandbagging, you name it, these 3 Stooges will stop at NOTHING.

I doubt they'll actually do that. The only way I can see them using someone who'll say she's a lesbian is if they bring in someone to say they thought they saw her in a lesbian bar or something. Even the most corrupt DA knows that in this case, to put someone on who says they heard her confess while in prison would result in a nice little trip to a disciplinary hearing and certain disbarment. Unless they can bring up someone from Tonya's past from years and years ago with an ooooold grudge who's willing to lie and say she once kissed her when the two were drunk or something, the prosecution isn't going to go further on the gay angle. I think that they've probably already been contacted by Lambda Legal over this, because they didn't ask her on cross about it (unless I missed that somewhere).

I agree with you wholeheartedly, but this has been a trial in which the law has been put aside. Look how much "evidence" that never was at discovery has been entered.

For example, Suzi Thorne's "I just remembered" testimony should NOT have been permitted to be given, and the same with Joal Henke's "I just remembered" stuff about Tonya. NO appeals court is going to let that pass.

Furthermore, it was transparently obvious that both Thorne and Henke were committing perjury, and that the prosecutors welcomed what both people were saying. This is subornation of perjury, and even for prosecutors, it is a felony.

However, it is rare that prosecutors even are cited for such actions, as they control the grand jury system (which no longer is independent) and in this trial, they also run the entire proceedings. People have told me that House always is looking to them in order to get instructions.

In a normal court in which the judge and prosecution were making at least some attempt to stick to the rules of evidence and the law, what I have described simply could not happen. Furthermore, if the prosecutors tried to do either, it would trigger an automatic mistrial.

However, I strongly suspect that (1) House and the prosecutors already have discussed this strategy privately (in ex parte conversations that, according to the Georgia Bar Rules for prosecutors, are supposed to be reported to the defense, and (2) if the prosecutors pull a stunt like this and the defense objects, House will overrule the attorneys (as he always does), and then tell the prosecutors to proceed.

When I speak to lawyers about this case, and that includes lawyers following it closely, they invariably tell me that House cannot do the things he is doing, and that if the prosecution does A, then B naturally will follow.

However, we have seen time and again that when the prosecutors do A, and then C follows, and I hear the "You can't DO that!" refrain. But then they do it.

Oh my word I have been to Images and Allen Golds and Im not a Lesbian, I am bisexual sure but I didnt go there to pick up women I went there to see the floor show. I am beginning to want to move really really bad.

I think Julie Watson has just been sucked into this as many of the friends of these people. She has a good heart and is a former teacher. For the record, she is pregnant, not just fat, with her first child, one that has been long awaited. Yes, she is on he wrong side and I think she has been fed information to make her believe as she does. No one wants to think their friends will lie to them. We all want to believe our friends and will stick with them. Which makes me all the more convinced of Tonya's innocence, as I don't know her, not do many of the people across the country who have made their decision based on the facts of the case and lack of evidence on the part of the state. People have lost friends because of taking one side or the other. I hope the ones who started all this will someday realize the damage they have done, but somehow I doubt it.

One more thing, if they pull the homosexual card, then Sarah Bass Henke, better stay away from a family member, since it will mean he must be a child molestor.

When I speak to lawyers about this case, and that includes lawyers following it closely, they invariably tell me that House cannot do the things he is doing, and that if the prosecution does A, then B naturally will follow.

However, we have seen time and again that when the prosecutors do A, and then C follows, and I hear the "You can't DO that!" refrain. But then they do it.

Timothy Hutton's Cadet Major Brian Moreland: "Sir, how could they do this?"George C. Scott's General Harlan Bache: "With the stroke of a pen, sir."From the movie Taps, 1981

If either of these scenarios were presented, it wouldn't surprise me a bit, and I don't think it would catch Dr. Lorandos off-guard either.

I just wonder if he might have something of his own up his sleeve that would counter something of this nature. While Tonya Craft may not have ever visited his website, I did, and something that is striking to me is how they represent their clients. Their tactics are very aggressive and they conduct their own in-depth investigation before ever going to trial. How many other attornies would go that route? I'll bet he not only KNOWS who Tonya was in jail with, but interviewed them.His deliberate, methodical dismantlement of all the "evidence" presented in this case tells me that Tonya just spent her half million dollars very wisely.

On another note, during both David and Tonya's testimony, Dr. Lorandos asked them to write down the accuser's phone numbers. Joal, the lying, cheating, ex-husband from hell, when asked about his contact with the other accusers testified that he wasn't welcomed into those circles, yet the were phone records brought in with hundreds of phone calls that proved otherwise. Somebody had made comments here about how the technology exists to decipher the 1's and 0's sitting on phone servers to tranlate them back into voices. It was interesting to think that it would actually be possible to have these conversations available. Anyway, I just found the whole discussion about digital technology fascinating.

I may be naive Bill, but I do not see these men stooping to this level to gain a conviction. I have followed this trial from the very beginning and have sat in that courtroom on several days to watch the behavior. I have seen behaviors of Officials that have been less than I could have imagined in my Home Town. This whole thing makes me very sick and disgusted. This thing has literally torn this County apart. I have raised a family here and have seen my children grow to very good young adults. I am going to jump out here on a limb. I know the DA's want to win. I heard the comment that Gregor said to David Craft (I don't get paid by the Molester) live in court. (IF I would have been David Craft the day that comment was said, I would have jumped that counter and whipped his butt). I guess I am just thinking, even he would not stoop to a level as low as that. All I can say for sure is this. If I see that happen, I will put my house up for sale and move out of this town. Before I do though, I AM GOING TO VOTE FIRST, you can bet on that. Sincerely, Honorable Catoosa Neighbor

Nothing the prosecuters or judge do at this point will surprise the defense lawyers. The bottom line is there is no evidence to convict. I f the jury convicts based on a character assassination{based totally on hearsay evidence] then it wouldnt have mattered what the defense had done!~!!!

I can't help thinking that when the date of this party was originally set, it was intended to be a celebration of the conviction and incarceration of Tonya Craft.

Another win for the LMJD and the CAC.

When the trial was first discussed in the media it was expected to last only two weeks. My guess is that most trials of this nature don't last that long, if they even get to trial, but Tonya was fighting the charges, so it will probably last a little longer.

What better time to hold a fund raiser, than after winning a case that had so much media attention.

I can see it all now... :

The congratulatory mood.

House running the roulette wheel.

Detective Tim Deal managing the card tables.

Arnt in his best Elvis costume and voice singing "Love me Tender".

An Gregor standing next to one the showgirls for a new face book portrait.

Nathan Deal[running for Governor in our state] will be in Catoosa County this Friday. Maybe some one needs to approach him about what is going on with the justice system. I am a voter from Georgia as well so I might call his campaign headquarters this week!!!

Ok, according the the wonder twins, being gay or lesbian means you are child molester. If being gay or lesbian makes you a child molester, then when there is a gay pride parade why don't the cops just round the lot of them up. I mean, it would be so much easier with a whole bunch of them clustered up. It would save time, right? This was just a thought I had today. I hadn't gotten through a whole cup of coffee yet and this is the kind of thinking I have without that cup. Scary, huh?

The address for the CAC is listed on the advertisement for the Casino Night party. Everyone needs to send letters telling how they feel about the lies and "experts". Give them something to do with their time besides destroying lives. Let them open envelopes for hours or days in hopes of finding money for their worthless paychecks!!!

Kimrn your 9:33 post is a very simplisted yet very accurate. As to Mr Andersons comments about the ada actions causing a automatic mistrial, I assume is correct and they can also get in trouble. My question is why would they go either of those routes, If an envelope has been passed to a juror.

They are going to go be where there are showgirls. I have seen "showgirls" and in fact have a friend that was one (she was WELL paid). Her attire consisted of pretty sparkly pasties, a thong, very high heels and a 4 ft tall headdress of feathers.

Let us use the same logic that Gregor and Arnt uses..

There will be drinking, if you drink you're a child molester.

There will be showgirls, if you dress scantily or wear a thong you're a child molester.

So the CAC is going to do a fund raiser with the very things that contribute heavily to child abuse and family dysfunction; Drinking and Gambling..

I do hope for an acquittal but if not and there is a hung jury and prosecutorial misconduct can be proven then the "Dynamic Duo" will be in alot of trouble and the case would not be able to be tried again!!! It would be considered double jeopardy. I have a feeling the defense attorneys would look into the allegations without being asked to!!!

This case reminds me of something that happened to us: My 7-year old daughter had a friend and classmate who received less than glowing remarks in her 1st grade progress report (a report that in my opionion was 100% accurate). The child's mother (who was, until then, a friend of my wife) went nuts over this. She made it her mission in life to destroy this teacher and get her fired. She called other parents and gossiped relentlessly, becoming increasingly agitated as time went on. When my wife tried to reason with her to calm down and let it go, she turned on us. It was at this point that everyone at the school realized she was crazy and just quit listening. The next year, their children attended a different school.

The moral of this story is that some parents lose touch with reality when it comes to their kids. Their child can do no wrong and anything that does go wrong in thier child's life must be someone else's fault.

In Tonya's case, it sounds like accuser #1 may have come into contact with someone (perhaps during her movie-making activities) who did abuse her. Or, perhaps she herself is the adventurous one who started all this by herself. (I knew kids who did that stuff when I was 7-8 years old.) Regardless, the mother of this child just can't believe that her daughter might be the instigator. There had to be a bad guy, and Tonya was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I guess we need to make sure that we have all of the Catoosa County voters that we can muster up, there picketing at the entranc. I think that nothing short of demanding that those who are exibiting the behaviors of a child molester be arrested.

Kerwyn... I know why they are having the Casino night. Job security. The more child molesters, the more work and money for them. You know, it is like fertilizing a garden. Encourage the child molesters so there will be more victims. More victims means more business for the CAC. Which in turn means more government funding.

It may be wishful thinking, but all I am expecting is more of the same vague, unsubstantiated slinging the bull around hoping that something sticks. I believe The Man's pathetic performance during cross backs this theory up. Keep in mind, these guys aren't used to having to go anywhere near this far to get a conviction. They are in uncharted waters for them, and it shows. I'm sure there will be perjury, but just more of the same old, same old.

I don't expect the lesbian angle to pan out. They've tried that dog and it just won't hunt. Unless they've got a picture of her smiling and waving for the camera, which if they did you can be rest assured would have been front and center all during presenting their case, they have got nothing. Let's assume for a minute Tonya is bi in the sense she occasionally is up for a recreational same-sex experience. Who would it likely have been with? My guess would be probably someone from or closely associated with the same circle of so-called friends that all hung out and partied together, and oh by the way, are also her accusers or else part of their entourage. If it's not that, it's likely something way in the past, or something that would have taken place far away from Catoosa Co, so good luck making hay on that one beyond the vague insinuations that have been standard fare so far. Too, Tonya seems to be a straight up person not too worried at this point about how others might judge her, and is smart enough to know that trying to hide something is not in her best interest. If she has that in her past, D-Lo would have asked her about it, and she would have said yes.

The jailhouse confession scenario I'm not sure is too likely either, but I think better odds of something along those lines than the lesbian angle. It sounds as if she spent a single night in county jail. Most crimes committed by females around here are minor, so her cellmates were probably in there on some rinky-dink charge and given the time frame that has elapsed, may have even completed their community service or whatever by now, assuming the charges haven't already been dropped or pled down. County jails being forced to house state inmates for months and months after sentencing since there being no room in the state system is a huge problem for county budgets in Georgia, so it's possible one of her cellmates might have been someone facing a long prison sentence the Dishonest Duo could offer to cut a deal with in return for a reduced time, but it's not that likely I think given the timeline and circumstances.

When it comes to why we are going to continue to just see the BS from Face and The Man, De Niro said it best channeling Al Capone in The Untouchables - "You're here because you got nothin. You got nothin in court, you don't got the book keeper, you got nothing! Nothing! And if you were a man you would have done it now. You don't got a thing! You punk!"

Does it really matter if the prosecutors bring someone in and can state and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that Tonya had a lesbian relationship? What does this prove? A lesbian does not a child molester make. I just hope the jurors aren't that backward and ignorant that they would make this ludicrous connection.

If they bring in cell mates who said she "confessed", would their credibility not be destroyed easily? I mean, they were in jail at the time as well, which means they drank, wore thongs, mowed in shorts, etc...Would they not be child molesters too??

Lastly, this Julie Leonard Watson from the FCA...I went to high school with her. She was rumored all through school to be a lesbian herself. Hmmmm...

"Well, it seems that yet another prosecution witness, this time another "distraught" mother, has lied on the stand. This witness was asked by the defense if Tonya Craft ever co-signed a power bill for her (to give her an official change of residence).

The woman exclaimed that Ms. Craft never did such a thing, and that if Tonya Craft's name was on the bill, it was an administrative error. During the lunch break, some members of the defense team went to the offices of the power board and found the documents in question. Both Ms. Craft AND the witness had signed them."

Oh, I think it's entirely possible that House is already being watched. The cat is already out of the bag on this one, and there have been numerous complaints with people that have no ties to the defendant to various agencies regarding his conduct. They won't intervene in the middle of the trial, but surely they will forced to do something. If they don't, the voters will vote his sorry butt out-unfortunately, he will still have time to wreak havoc until his term expires.

My husband sat in the Catoosa Co jail for a little less than 3 months after sentencing before being moved to GDCP in Jackson & was @ GDCP for only 4 wks. He was @ the CC jail for 46 days before he was sentenced because the judge ordered him confined while the probation office did a presentence investigation. BTW he is now branded as a child molester by the LMJC even tho he never even touched a child or came close to committing child molestation.

There are only a handful of inmates in the CCjail that are sitting there after sentencing because they are waiting out there 1st appeals. The time they are doing there does count towards their prison sentence.

I am not impressed by the GBI's allegations against Judge Cook. I think that had she cussed out litigants other than government employees, nothing would be happening to her. It's only when almighty members of the political class get dissed that investigations and consequences like this happen.

If you think that the executive branches of government do not attempt intimidation tactics against judges, you should research what the IRS has done to some federal judges hearing tax protester cases.

If I were a judge suspecting that the GBI were investigating me to get some leverage in court, I'd be saying things far worse than what she did. In fact, it would be all I could do to hold back from kicking their tax-fatted asses!

If the agents hadn't got it on tape the JQC would have dismissed the entire thing. KCG can't go one day without throwing around who her daddy is. Not impressed. Now her son is an up & comer up there too. KCG cussed the agents out because she thought the agents asked an informant about her. Did that happen I don't know.

Frankly, I think that the GBI agents probably deserved more than a good cussing out. I'm not disputing the facts. I'm pointing out the double standards with enforcement of infractions against government employees versus infractions against us.

In fact, here in Texas, the powers that be let a judge get away with having an affair with a prosecutor during a capital murder trial which resulted in the death penalty. But cuss out a policeman? Let the hammer fall!

My comments don't address your situation with the judge, nor do they exonerate her of anything she may have done wrong with respect to your relative.

Dan said..."I can't help thinking that when the date of this party was originally set, it was intended to be a celebration of the conviction and incarceration of Tonya Craft."

The trial was rescheduled from April to May within something like a week or so of when it was to happen in April. Something I had read up on trying to find out the status of the PI's trial, which the state conveniently set to take place AFTER the trial for Tonya (so PI won't testify).

That may or may not play into the theory about the party schedule.

Does anyone know if they have held this celebration / party before? an annual event?

Folks in my wanderings I've found an excellent resource and organization dedicated to solving issues and problems such as we are witnessing in the Tonya Craft Circus.

There's even a Civil Action warning form that can be filled out and sent to parties who may be violating Federal law, I'd love to send one to the HAG TAG team, Buzz Franklin, Sheriff Phil Summers, and the "Officers of the Court", and the CAC, except I no longer reside in the LMJD.

I'm of the opinion that this whole shebang will end up in Federal Court, and if we play our cards right, the system may actually be overhauled. For the record, anyone who think Nathan Deal is going to jump on this bandwagon is deluding themselves. The 9th District special election coming up, the only worthwhile candidate I see is going to be Mike Freeman, who served as a chaplain in Vietnam. He is the only candidate who has a claim to serve from the heart, not the wallet. The rest of the pack are the usual suspects of bankers, businessmen, and so forth. NW Georgia has not had a Democratic representative since 1873, that's about when things went bad in this part of the world. See these articles for more info.

to Jerri Lynn Ward, J.D., you're supposedly from Texas, so you have NO idea how things are done in this part of Georgia. Don't be so quick to assume the judges in this circuit are pure and holy. You might find these websites to be an eyeopener. The GBI is pretty much blocked from doing any real work in this part of the state, and the State Attorney General's office, well they are shut out because the Attorney General, Thurbert Baker is (gasp!) a black Demmicrat.

There is absolutely no way on this earth that Tonya would first refuse to have an interview with Detective Deal without an attorney and subsequently spill her guts out about incriminating details to her cellmates after turning herself in. That would be an absolutely unbelievable change in character and logic! I don't believe such a thing for a moment.

Reading over the timeline, and how this trial is the most upside down I have ever seen (as in prosecutors acting like defense and defense acting like prosecutors with their expert witnesses), I've come to a conclusion. Evil does exist in Catoosa County. Evil is inside that courtroom. But it is not evil as most of us equate it. When I begin writing a story, when I'm in the development stage, I use a saying I wrote down years ago to help me develop my baddies. It says everything and helps me stay away from giving the creeps too many good qualities.

Evil is the absence of empathy.

Apply this expression to the ADAs, judge, detective, interviewers, examiner, and other so-called professionals attached to the prosecution's side, and you have characters so laughably bad I would have to give them good qualities to make my story saleable. And I have worked with historical fiction with well known characters from the Wild West who seem to have no good qualities when compared to their Hollywoodfied personas.

Unfortunately, to understand the motives behind this case much better than we do now, we would have to lose our empathy. And then we would be as bad as them.

Theresa Watson, romenewsbywatson.com, is a tinfoil hat conspiracy theory nut. But, even someone who is delirious says SOME words that make sense, so I enjoy reading her site occasionally. Around here, the corruption and good old boy system is so widespread, just close your eyes, spin around until you are dizzy, then throw something and occasionally you make a hit - that's pretty much what she does.

Judge Kristina Cook Graham has it coming, waaaaay overdue to get taken down a notch or two. But, I have been in her courtroom, and will say she appears to be at least halfway competent, more than I can say for her fellow LMJC judge Brian House.

Nathan Deal is a joke, he's as corrupt as the summer day is long. He started his career as a D, then switched to an R when it was advantageous to do so. Even R activists down here hate his guts because he is so corrupt and has used his ties and influence over state officials (Lt. Gov Casey Cagle and others) to fatten has wallet related to no-bid state contracts going to his auto salvage business. He's been in the news a lot lately, and not in a good way. He'd fit right in with House and the crew, good old boy all the way.

After having seen how well D-Lo has done, I feel safe presuming that he has filed a motion for disclosure of rebuttal witnesses.

We've seen how that is no obstacle for House should the state have not disclosed some witnesses, but should any surprise witness pop up Monday the record of what all D-Lo had filed with the court will just be added to all that should help create the legacy that House, Arnt and Gregor each has to deal with.

At some point those 3 have to start worrying more about themselves, and the half-azzed cross exam of Tonya may be an indication we're already to that point.

Can someone please tell me how and why homosexuality has any connection to child molestation???? This creepy prosecutor has gone way too far to the side of absurd in his effort to denigrate Tonya's character to be persuasive to even the most backward, trailer trash jurist. No one could be so stupid and backward as to see any merit in the prosecutions weak arguments and insinuations.

This is a bit off topic, but shouldn't Caroline Cobb be held accountable for something in her lack of diligence in following up on Tonya's complaint against the mother in law. I think she said that she transferred the case to a different jurisdiction but Tonya said she made an appointment for June. Not only was the appt too far out if abuse were to be a real threat, but if she transferred it or if it had been followed up on and dismissed, Tonya ought to have been notified. If it was dismissed as having been verified as not suspicious, why did the Henkes say that they were unaware of the allegations until after they were dealing with the daughter's examinations? Something reeks about that whole situation. I was also curious why the Sheriff and his wife, that Tonya first got advice from about her worries on the step mom were not witnesses for the defense-are they worried about husband's job if he sides with the defense? Something doesn't add up.

Actually the defense made 30 pretrial motions, which according to this article, most were denied. Interesting, but I don't even remember the one regarding Arnt before. How very strange, indeed. I'm curious as to what all 30 were, though, and I haven't come across a full listing of those anywhere as of yet.

"...Your motion is denied,” the judge said. However, he ruled that defense attorneys must be given access to the evidence they previously subpoenaed from the sheriff’s department and other potential witnesses."

I have never seen a case in which just a gag order by itself restricted access to all court filings (motions, subpeonas...) and do not recall the gag order in this case being used to 'seal' those filings.

I have seen ONLY 2 filings released, one being the grand jury confiramtion and the other, I believe, that gag order.

Does anyone near Ringold know if the public documents have been sealed, they won't allow you to get copies?

Why doesn't somebody just go ask the court clerk for copies to all these filings?

The prosecution might try a "hail Mary" play being so far behind at this point but it could backfire. The defense case was a very concise presentation while the prosecution case is a lot of meandering about irrelevant stuff. They have to come up with something more relevant or shocking than the suggestion that Tonya is bi.

It's a shame that American jurors listen to lies bought from jailhouse informants. The obvious conclusion to draw when a jailhouse confession is introduced is that the prosecutor thinks he hasn't proven his case.

The judge DID indeed appear in court on behalf of Henke in his divorce with Tony Craft. What I didn't know (and missed was)"Further, since Assistant District Attorney Chris Arnt has testified against Ms. Craft during previous proceedings, the defense argued, the prosecutor is a potential witness in the case. "

“Your motion is denied,” the judge said.

So let me understand this, both the Judge and the ADA have been, in a previous matter, against her in court.

I wish I could go and request the court records to obtain the list of pretrial motions but, unfortunately, while I reside in Catoosa Cty, my work location is not in close proximity to the county clerk's office in Ringgold. Perhaps there is someone else that attends the court proceedings that can stop by that office and request those records. I would like to see what 30 pretrial motions were filed by the defense attorneys. This is also described as one of Dr. Lorandos' defense strategies. While most motions were denied, it is at the very least on record for appellate review, if it should come to that.

I, too, find it somewhat as a shock that Arnt did indeed tell the Sheriff's office to ignore subpoenas. I don't know that much about legal proceedings, but isn't that in itself a huge no-no?

How ironic is it that the prosecution is hoping to catch Tonya in a lie so that they can proceed to totally discredit her testimony, when in fact ALL of the lies I've witnessed have originated with the prosecution side of the aisle!

If Arnt is spotted at the local Wal-Mart shopping this weekend, then I suspect that he STILL does not realize how much do-do he is in. Don't forget that while we witness this fiasco in stunned amazement, to HAG, it's just their normal modus operandi. Perhaps they just assume that while they may have gotten away with this before, they will get away with it again. I've heard too many other horror stories from other victims to believe that their behavior at the Tonya Craft trial is simply an isolated incident.

I thought the same thing about Arnt being spotted at Wal-mart. If I was getting my ass handed to me in probably the highest profile trial of my career, I'd be huddled up all weekend with my team trying to figure out a way to recover my mojo.

Are we crazy thinking this will all go somewhere, or are they crazy for thinking it won't? Time will tell I guess.

To a previous anon poster. Julie Watson may be pregnant at this time, but she has always been a very large woman. She has always tried to follow the "in crowd" and has actually been a running joke in Ringgold since her younger days. She was NEVER an athlete by any standard (keeping the books for the basketball & softball teams does not make you an athlete). She has been bearing false witness for a couple of weeks now & is the reason my child will not join the FCA. It is sad, but it is true. My father was the head of FCA for a local high school for many years. He was an athlete & also a coach. I'm sorry if you feel as if she has "just gotten caught up" in this because of her friendships, but she is the prime example of what a Christian should NOT be. She has a right to her opinion in this case, but by knowingly & purposefully lying about Tonya, Melydia & others involved in this case, is disgusting and immoral.

Also, when she has tried to follow the "in crowd", she was made fun of by the very same people she was following. I would not be surprised if this were happening again. My calls will be sent to further up the chain than Jay and one has already been sent. She is actually the person I want my daughter to stay away from. Even if Tonya was a lesbian, that would not make her a child molester. The FACT is, she is not.

My point is this, do we really want our Christian teenage girls, who already have confusion due to hormones, in the care of someone who does not practice what they preach? Someone who incites hatred & lies, just to simply lie or to "fit in" with people who do not live by what she sees as a Christ-like life. I find it quite funny that when she gets called on the mat, she runs and hides. Well, she won't be able to hide from my God come judgement day.

This is to clear up some slanderer and incorrect information going on.About Casino Night:Since you can't see the back, one cannot tell if the girls are wearing thongs or not from the photos posted but I can tell you they are not. Did you know showgirls have to wear a special kind of sport pantyhose to dance? Much thicker than regular pantyhose. Showgirls where in the Kids movie Annie, by the way so what is the big deal? They represent theater, glamour and entertainment with the feathers and rhinestones not hookers. You guys turned them into something dirty, not CAC.

I am blown away at how people are reacting to the fund raiser. Has anyone here posting these hurtful and vindictive comments ever spoken to a child abuse victim?I have. And I CHALLENGE each and every one of you to spend ONE day talking to one of these kids. Just one day. You would not make it to the second. You have no idea of who you are hurting with your bashing. None of you have the heart to do the job that CAC does EVERY DAMN DAY. If you think you can do better then apply for the job. See how long you last. See what you would do to fight for a child who speaks up.The CAC lost their case against Richard Bryson Due to lack of evidence. Everyone said he was not guilty too. The 8 yr old girl went back to him. The 2 other girls who spoke against him cried for people called them liars. He moved to TN where he fathered 6 kids and kept them home schooled. The 8 yr old is now 18. She had what they think to be HIS child, that died at 3 weeks of age a few months ago. He is now back in jail awaiting his new trial against the same child(now incest charges because she is 18) except this time there may be 6 more children to file charges for.

Ya'll want to stand up for him too?

I don't know if this woman everyone is talking about is guilty or not. Only she and the kids know the real truth. All I do know is that the CAC is doing the best they can with what they got and if they wanted to go to a party to raise money for the kids they fight for day in and day out then for the love of god, let them.

By the way, Casino Night will have an Elvis too. Want to bash that? Or the Lion King theatrical production held in Las Vegas? Want to bash Disney for their association or “Poor Taste/Hubris”Or the couple of police officers (not the entire force as some have suggested) who will be there or the shuttle drivers, or the Blue Nights who are police officers who are doing the Rally Ride to raise money FOR THE KIDS? Talk about the trial all you want but please just leave CAC and Casino night out of it. This event was planed 2 years ago and has people from several states including Oregon coming so “pushing” it back was out of the question. It was HER defense attorneys who pushed HER court date to the same time as the Casino night, not CAC. CASINO NIGNT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HER. NEVER HAS. Anyone who has ever wanted to play a casino type game for fun without losing any money and get a feel of what a casino atmosphere is like without having to go to Vegas is welcome. And please, BRING YOUR CAMERAS. They are not doing anything wrong.Your cameras WILL NOT be taken away. The way this has gotten out of hand shows how bored some people are. It’s sad.

Bill Anderson is full of himself. It is abnormal for 8 year old children to exhibit sexualized behavior. There are many professionals that believe that indeed Ms. Craft is guilty. I do not belive for one minute that her own young daughter lied.

Some of you came a day early to get your photos and took shots of my kids. Please do not put my kids photos on the I-Net for their safety. You don't have to try to catch a shot over the fence, just come on in tomorrow and pay the $25.00 and you can take all ya want. To some, I will even show you around again. I hope your school photos come out well. Your white dress with the yellow "no trespassing" sign may not be the best though. You guys don't have to drive in real fast, snap a shot then leave either. You may run over one of my cats doing that.

About Me

I teach economics at Frostburg State University in Frostburg, Maryland. We are located on the Allegheny Plateau, and we have cool summers and tough winters.
I am the single father of five children, four of them adopted from overseas and I have two grandchildren. My family and I are members of Faith Presbyterian Church (PCA).